Purchase Guide: Crafts

Buying Crafts Online

Crafts is a wide-sweeping term used to describe a great variety of art. What exactly is a craft? Well, crafts are usually classified (informally, of course!) as a piece of art that is functional or serves some utility. Crafts are traditionally thought of as decorative arts, especially when they are made with natural media such as wood, clay, glass, textiles, and metal.

In reality, though, the term "craft" is used to describe almost any form of creative expression or hobby in which works or objects are created by hand for fun and profit. Crafts include everything from the crudest works of traditional handicraft to delicate works of fine art that don't serve any real practical use. Artists (and even non-artists) indulge in crafting to express themselves, to pass the time, to have a little fun with something to show for it at the end. It's an artistic form that can be engaged in from every economic rung, experience level, and talent stratum.

MisterArt.com is proud to help make it that way! We offer scads of affordable craft supplies online, everything an artist needs for metal tooling to sand art. With so many discount craft supplies in stock, though, it can sometimes be tough to find exactly what you're looking for. This guide is designed to make it easy to find the supplies you need for all your craft projects.

• Book Binding
• Candle Making
• Decorative Painting
• Glitter
• Gold Leaf
• Jewelry Making
• Leather Crafting
• Metal Tooling
• Model Making
• Polymer and Hobby Clay
• Sand Art
• Sealing Wax
• Stamps and Embossing
• Stenciling
• Textiles and Dyes
• Papier Mache and Decoupage

Book Binding

Book binding originated in India, where religious texts were copied on to palm leaves bound with twine. At that time, Westerners were still writing their stories and history down onto scrolls. Today, of course, nearly all books are bound by machine. Machines, however, have never been as creative as good old-fashioned humans, and many crafters enjoy book binding as a way to create beautiful pieces of art.

MisterArt.com has special VIP pricing on the acid-free paper, binding board, and safe adhesives needed to build your own book. To give your pages a professional look, a bone folder makes perfect creases on every page and works great on invitations, bulletins, letters, and everything else that needs folding. Once your book has been folded, bound, glued, and taped, get ready—it's time to decorate!

Candle Making

Nothing sets the perfect mood like candlelight. Why pay more for store-bought candles when you can make your own high-quality wax lights in any beautiful color, scent, or shape you desire for less? You can find great discounts on all the candle making supplies you need at MisterArt.com!

Use different waxes to achieve your ideal texture and melting point. Our selection of wicks, dyes, waxes, and molds give candle makers all the custom options they need to craft beautiful, handmade candles.

Decorative Painting

Decorative painting is a craft hobby that involves splashing paint around on objects, furniture, and buildings rather than canvas! MisterArt.com ships decorative painting supplies fast from our large stock of the following tools:

• Brushes used in decorative painting are more durable so that they can handle the abrasive paints and surfaces that are often used in the medium.
• Craft acrylics are specially formulated to bond to tricky surfaces, including masonry, glass, tile, ceramics, stoneware, china, metal, and wood. These colors won't fade in the sunlight! Some craft acrylics are even intended for body painting.
• Fabric paint is, of course, intended for use on fabric. Create clothing accents, theatrical backdrops, unique towels, and lots more in hundreds of different colors.
• Faux finishing products go on like paint to give your crafts a metallic, antique, or even iridescent finish. Try not to go crazy with the glow-in-the-dark finishes, too!
• Glazes and mediums are designed to give a polished, consistent texture to your crafts. Use them with paints or by themselves.
• Decorative painting tools feature unique designs intended to help crafters apply paints and finishes to their work in curious ways.
• Sealers and finishers protect crafts' surfaces and give them a final glossy or matte finish.
• Spray paints are a quick, easy method of radically transforming the color of any project.

If that list seems a tad bewildering, check out our selection of painting books and media. You'll be decorating like the pros in no time!

Glitter

A true staple of crafting, glitter adds energy and sparkle to any artistic project and can be safely used and enjoyed by all ages. MisterArt.com has everyday discounts on all sorts of glitter, from metallic to translucent and even ultra-fine glitter. Whether you're spicing up a scrapbook or garnishing a science project with gleam, you'll need a few specific craft supplies:

• Adhesives are a must when working with glitter. Put down a thin, consistent coat of glitter adhesive on to your craft project and then don't be shy: dump on the glitter! What sticks is what stays; apply more adhesive if necessary.
• Glitter, of course, is the main attraction. But modern crafters know that glitter now includes reflective beads, metallic powders, and pearlescent crystals. We're not in kindergarten anymore!
• Glitter paints and pens are a great choice for art projects requiring very small or precise amounts of glitter. These are best for fine details.
• Glitter tools can make your life easier. They include special applicators, palettes, even mistake-fixers!

Gold Leaf

Gold leaf can be a difficult and frustrating craft supply to master, but it adds an unparalleled "wow" factor to anything it's applied to. Because gold leaf is very fragile and somewhat pricey, a lot of artists are hesitant to take the plunge and get their hands dirty working with the medium. MisterArt.com can make it easier on crafters by making both large and small quantities of gold leaf available at low prices and shipping it out fast!

Gold leaf and powders come in enough forms and colors to gild virtually any art project. For artists that are new to the medium, looking to experiment, or interested in introducing a friend or child to gold leaf, there are numerous excellent sets and kits available that include everything a crafter needs to recreate the inimitable look of metal leaf.

To apply gold leaf and powders to your project, you'll need sizing and sealants. These supplies attach the leaf to your craft's surface and then seal the leaf to protect your work from damage. Other tools such as leafing pens, brushes, and gilding gloves help ensure that your metal leaf goes down smoothly and in one piece.

Still having trouble? There are tons of great tips and tricks available in our books and media devoted to gold leaf!

Jewelry Making

Crafting is all about adding beauty to everyday, functional items. What could be more functional (or beautiful!) than the human body? Artists have been crafting jewelry to adorn the human form since the earliest days of civilization, but even in today's world of laser-cut precision, man-made diamonds, and platinum alloys, creating extraordinary wearable art is still within the reach of even the most inexperienced creative mind.

MisterArt.com has special VIP prices on basic jewelry making materials, including copper wire, leather string, hemp twine, casting cement, and more basic building blocks of chic adornments. Create your own handmade beads and beadwork with tools such as bead baking racks, bead looms, and bead reamers to give your jewelry a unique, artsy look.

Create radical and whimsical shapes with resin molds to build one-of-a-kind medallions, earrings, and more, then use tools such as tweezers, pliers, and trimmers to add final touches before painting.

For the artist who's just getting started making jewelry or wants to experiment a little, many sets and kits are available that include everything needed to create simple jewelry projects. You can find more ideas in our books and media section!

Leather Crafting

Leather crafting involves the use of coloring, carving, and shaping techniques to turn a piece of hide or leather into a work of art. Originally, leather crafting was developed as a method to add decorative flourishes to functional items such as saddles, boots, and furniture, but today leather craft has evolved into a unique form of expression enjoyed for its own sake.

Needles, awls, grommets, and thread can turn ordinary leather into dream catchers, jewelry, holsters, coasters, and much more. Use rivets and snaps to complete a pair of handmade leather pants or even a jacket!

Leather dyeing usually involves the use of spirit or alcohol based dyes where alcohol quickly gets absorbed into moistened leather, carrying the pigment deep into the surface. "Hi-liters" and "antiquing" stains can be used to add more definition to patterns. Leather paint, cement, and stamps are also great for altering the look of a tanned hide.

You can find everyday discounts on all of these tools and more at MisterArt.com!

Metal Tooling

Creating art with metal can be an especially rewarding experience. Because metal it such a sturdy medium, it can be applied to a wide variety of functional uses and will last for a long time. Metal tooling typically involves creating relief drawings and artwork by punching, stamping, and embossing sheets of metal with different kinds of tools.

By using embossing tools and wheels, artists can etch and shape designs into metal foils, creating intricate, three-dimensional works. After creating a relief, the relative fragility of foils makes it necessary to fill in the impressions left by the embossing tools with filling paste. After hardening, filling paste makes the artwork safe to handle, polish, and work on without fear of crushing the embossing flat. Filling paste is easily applied with a spatula or other metal tool.

Cooper plates are also a popular medium for metal tooling. After etching, engraving, or raising artwork on to a copper plate, many artists apply a sculpture solution to give the copper an antiqued look.

All of these metal tools and more are available at unbeatable prices at MisterArt.com.

Model Making

Models can provide a three-dimensional example for builders to follow as well as show potential financiers a smaller-scale version of what they could expect for their money. Models are also great for creating custom Christmas decorations, realistic military dioramas, and even lively model train sets.

There are a number of different kinds of materials that are used to build these models, each with its own advantages:

• Balsa and basswood are two lightweight woods with a high strength-to-density ratio. They can be easily cut using a hobby knife and can be stained to represent any kind of wood in a model. Typically, balsa and basswood are available in sheets, blocks, and sticks.
• Foam and Styrofoam can be cut, pressed, and shaped to represent all kinds of lightweight and durable 3D shapes useful in model building. Anything from hills to trees can be made from foam, and painted as well. Foam comes in a variety of sizes, shapes, and sheets.
• Plastic sheets are extremely durable and useful for representing a wide variety of man-made building materials in models. Plastic sheets can easily be cut, folded, and shaped and can be painted to look like anything.
• Landscaping materials are especially useful for architects. By using them to recreate trees, fields, ponds, and other geographic features, architects can give their clients and builders an idea of how their structures will interact with the environment. Landscaping supplies are also great for model train enthusiasts!

MisterArt.com provides fast delivery to your door of all of these model making materials as well as tools for shaping, carving, attaching, and cleaning them.

Polymer and Hobby Clay

Polymer and hobby clay is clay that is man-made rather than simply dug up from the earth. Typically, polymer clays contain a base of PVC and one or more kinds of liquid plasticizer to keep it soft until cured. Small amounts of kaolin or white china clay are added as an opaquing agent to some colors. Other polymer and hobby clays remain more translucent and can be left without pigment, or pigments can be added. Mica is also added in some colors by some brands.

Polymer clay hardens by curing at temperatures created in a typical home oven and doesn't shrink or change texture during the process. When properly cured, most polymer and hobby clays create works of art sturdy enough not to break if dropped or normally stressed.

Tools aren't a necessity when working with polymer and hobby clays, but ribbon cutting tools, clay tools, and rollers work well. Molds and presses are useful for repeatedly producing specific shapes. Pasta machines are great for making clays pliant and easy to shape. After the clay has been cured, different finishes can be applied to the sculpture, giving it a glazed, metallic, or pearlescent look. You can find great deals on clay tools at MisterArt.com!

For beginners or for artists interested in experimenting with polymer and hobby clays, many sets and kits are available containing everything needed to create a work in the medium. For more ideas, check out our polymer and hobby clay books and media section!

Sand Art

Sand art, as its name certainly implies, is an art form that encompasses sand paintings, sand mosaics, and other sand projects, especially for home decor and gifts. Sand art can add an extra decorative dimension to papier mache, jewelry, baskets, wood cut-outs, boxes, and plaques. The full range of beautifully colored sand available from MisterArt.com gives artists limitless design possibilities. Because it's non-toxic, working with sand is fascinating, fun, and easy for all ages.

Sealing wax

Sealing wax gives a classic, formal touch to stationary, correspondence, cards, scrapbooks, and all sorts of other paper and cloth objects. Use colorful sticks of sealing wax to seal private correspondence shut or simply as a classy decoration. Try pressing a metal seal or rubber stamp into a heated wax medallion and create an unforgettable touch to your packages and papercraft. You can find everything you need at MisterArt.com!

Stamps and Embossing

Stamping is a craft in which an ink made of dye or pigment is applied to an image or pattern that has been carved, molded, laser engraved, or vulcanized onto a sheet of rubber, plastic, or another substance. The rubber is often mounted onto wood or an acrylic handle to produce a more solid tool. The ink-coated stamp is then pressed on to any type of medium, transferring the image or text. Embossing, rather than using ink, actually impresses the image into the medium. Typically, the preferred medium for stamping and embossing is fabric or paper. Other media used include wood, metal, glass, and plastic.

The large variety of inks and powders available for stamps and embossing make it possible for artists to create extremely colorful and detailed artwork. Many use stamp pads to transfer ink on to their stamps. For beginners, sets are available that bundle together everything needed to begin stamping: ink, stamps, stamp pads, and patterns.

Skilled, experienced stampers often use tools to create their own stamps and patterns. You can find everyday discounts on stamps and embossing supplies and accessories at MisterArt.com.

Stenciling

Stenciling is a fast, easy way to reproduce the same shape or design over and over again by painting or drawing with a template. Stencils are created by removing sections of these templates in the shape of a design or text. Stenciling paint, ink, or pigment is then laid down in the void where the removed sections of template once were, which transfers the image on to the medium underneath the stencil.

Using stencils, even beginners can create polished, layered art simply by tracing. Many decorative stencils feature intricate patterns that can be layered on to scrapbooks, greeting cards, and other media. More complex stencils used for art forms such as airbrushing typically include rough shapes that can be quickly laid down as a starting point for detailed original artwork. Many artists use blank stencil film and other tools to create their own custom stencils that can be used again and again.

MisterArt.com offers fast shipping on all the craft supplies artists need for stenciling. For more ideas and inspiration, check out our stenciling books and media.

Textiles and Dyes

Textiles represent a truly ancient craft, and the process of producing textiles and dyes has been increased so much in speed and scale by industrialization that it would boggle the minds of our ancestors. In the Internet age, artists can take advantage of this mass production to add colorful flair to everyday cloth objects.

Nearly any fabric can be altered in ways not wholly dissimilar from a canvas or scrapbook. T-shirts, aprons, even umbrellas are a blank slate for artists with a vision and a few dabs of paint or dye. Dyes specifically designed for use with fabrics from silk to leather are available in a multitude of colors. Swirl them all together to achieve a psychedelic tie-dye effect! Or take a look at our textile books and media to learn the techniques of batik dyeing!

For artists who don't feel comfortable without a brush in their hands, MisterArt.com also has a large stock of fabric paints and fabric brushes. Fabric markers are also a great choice, especially for metallic accents and fine details. What better way to show off your work than to wear your art around town!

Papier Mache and Decoupage

Papier mache is a craft material made from chewed-up pieces of paper (sometimes reinforced with textiles) stuck together using a wet paste. The bits and strips of paper can be sculpted while wet, and the sculpture becomes solid when the paste dries. Other mache products already include finely ground paper, eliminating the need to tear up a bunch of newspaper!

MisterArt.com has special VIP pricing on a variety of pastes and glues ideal for papier mache and the specialized collage art known as decoupage. Just cut strips of newspaper to fit your project, wet them, and mold them around a base shape--Styrofoam, balloons, cardboard, crumpled newspaper, wire screens, jugs, bottles, and more! Once the sculpture hardens, it's ready to paint. Add a glossy finish to really make the piece pop.

Craft acrylics are specially formulated to bond to tricky surfaces, including masonry, glass, tile, ceramics, stoneware, china, metal, and wood. These colors won't fade in the sunlight! Some craft acrylics are even intended for body painting.

Fabric paint is, of course, intended for use on fabric. Create clothing accents, theatrical backdrops, unique towels, and lots more in hundreds of different colors.

Faux finishing products go on like paint to give your crafts a metallic, antique, or even iridescent finish. Try not to go crazy with the glow-in-the-dark finishes!

Glazes and mediums are designed to give a polished, consistent texture to your crafts. Use them with paints or by themselves.

Sealers and finishers protect crafts' surfaces and give them a final glossy or matte finish.

Spray paints are a quick, easy method of radically transforming the color of any project.